Take Our River Back

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By LOIS HENRY, Californian columnist

Regardless of how Chuck Williams feels about turning 85 this coming Dec. 23, there will likely be some folks out there who won't be celebrating.

Because every tick of the clock forces them closer to having to face the truth.
Williams cannot serve as the Kern River Watermaster forever.

He's done it for the past 36 years. On Dec. 29, it'll be 37.
"I suppose when I'm pushing up daisies, then they'll have to make a decision," joked Williams.

"They" are the Kern River interests, entities that have Kern River and/or Lake Isabella storage rights. (City of Bakersfield, Kern Delta Water District, Buena Vista and North Kern water storage districts and the Kern County Water Agency)

By LOIS HENRY
Californian staff writer
e-mail: lhenry@bakersfield.com
Depending on how a Kern County judge rules in the next few weeks, the fight for the Kern River could continue moving forward, or go back to square one.
Judge Steve...

Bakersfield residents packed the City Council chambers Thursday night in a show of overwhelming support for the city's quest to run water down the Kern River year round.
The chambers were standing room only and nearly 30 people spoke. The...

The Kern River needs you again.
Specifically, it needs your rear end planted in a seat at the City Council chambers Thursday night.
This is one of those historic moments you won't want to miss.
Seriously, when your grandkids are playing...

hirty-six years is a long time to wait.
Too long.
Which is why Rich O'Neil was ecstatic, as was I, to see the city of Bakersfield's latest move toward getting water back in the Kern River.
Wednesday night, the City Council approved spending...

The Kern River had water this summer for the first time in years. The lure of cool, clear water brought residents to its shores every day. Not to mention egrets, ducks, cranes, hawks and even some osprey.
Water in the river took some of...

I'd love to point a finger and complain about how the city of Bakersfield hates trees and that's why whole groves along the Kern River were mowed down in the last few months. Unfortunately, it's not that simple.
Fortunately, for me though,...

It's funny what you pick up when you're not even looking. The other day I e-mailed the city of Bakersfield double checking whether volunteers should even muster an effort to re-establish an irrigation system along the Kern River Parkway to...

Maybe it's just me, but when an agricultural water district ships thousands of acre feet of Kern River water south to grow suburbs in Irvine, it kind of takes the oomph out of their argument that running water down the actual river bed...

Editor's note: This article was first published on 6/5/2010. Water districts opposing the city of Bakersfield's efforts to get water in the Kern River filed a lawsuit Wednesday against the State Water Resources Control Board over its...

At first, it was a trickle. Like a scout sent down the riverbed to see if it was safe to send more soldiers. If the trickle met with disaster, no use wasting good water to rescue a rivulet left writhing in the sand.
This was a couple of...

Miller and Haggin battled in court for nearly a decade over the Kern River. The fight established two main principles of California water law, riparian, which are attached to land along the water and appropriative, belonging to those who...

MONTGOMERY WARD : It's amazing how quickly rumors circulate in this age of social media and instant messaging. On Monday, rumors were flying that the old Golden State Mall on F Street was about to be turned into a homeless center run by its new owner, Canyon Hills Assembly of God.

OIL PRICES : Oil producers have sharply curtailed drilling as the price of crude has plummeted, but it may not last for long. At least that is the opinion of oil magnate T. Boone Pickens, who predicted this week that oil prices would rebound to about $100 a barrel by the end of 2016.